LIFESTYLE

Hoppy Easter!

Hello there!

‘No matter how long the Winter, the Spring is sure to follow.’

Like most of you, I am always happy to welcome Spring.  Longer days, warmth of the sun and all the bright colours out and about.  I’ve been spending this weekend putting some Easter decorations around Rose Cottage so thought I would share some ideas with you!

Firstly, an Easter tree.  I used this porter vase from Emma Bridgewater and put in 6 strands of artificial pussy willow from Dunelm.  You can find it on this link: http://www.dunelm.com/product/artificial-pussy-willow-stem-1000001995?itsearchTerm=flowers%20artificial

I bought these beautiful eggs from Katrina at DippyDuckHQ on Instagram – she is really talented and decorates these eggs by hand.  I love Instagram for connecting with small businesses and finding quirky little items you can’t get on the high street.  Here’s the link to her page: https://www.instagram.com/katrina.lyall_dippyduck/

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A cheap and cheerful way to make your home look bright and cheery for spring is daffodils.  I picked these this morning from our garden and have them scattered around the cottage in little vases.

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I don’t like to spend a lot of money on Easter decorations as they are only out on display for a short time.  I brought together some of my favourite pottery pieces and stacked them up, largest at the bottom to smallest at the top.  I think it looks really effective yet so simple.

And lastly, how cute are these little rabbit spoons which I picked up from here: https://www.tuttidecor.co.uk/product/rabbit-spoon/  Adding a little Easter touch to some afternoon tea!

The hubby and I normally go to his family’s caravan over the Easter holidays so we are excited now to bring Harry along this year too.  Hope you all have a lovely Easter celebrating with friends and family!

Hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill

LIFESTYLE

Mother’s Day Gift Ideas

Hello there!

This will be my first Mother’s Day as a Mummy! To say I’m excited is an understatement! I never really thought I would see this day as a big deal for myself but I am really looking forward to spending the day celebrating with my Hubby and Harry.  We are planning a quiet day together going for a meal and then a long walk.

I thought I would show you a few items I have got recently which I think would be lovely ideas for Mother’s Day gifts.  So here goes:

Firstly this Emma Bridgewater mug.  How adorable is this mug and currently on offer on the website for only £14.95!  I am a huge Emma B fan and would love this mug in all the designs available! Find it here: http://www.emmabridgewater.co.uk/en/uk/icat/mugdiscount

Does your Mum love snuggling up on the sofa? How about doing it with this gorgeous pom pom throw?  This is from Matalan and is only £15! I couldn’t find it on their website but there were lots in store when I bought this one.  It’s a really good size and super soft to the touch.

Next are these personalised socks from Alphs.  This company specialises in personalised socks and have a beautiful range to choose from for Mother’s Day and lots of other occasions.  I really love these and will definitely be wearing them with pride on Sunday!  Check out the range here: https://alphs.co/collections/mothers-day   Use the code MOTHERSDAYSOCKS for 20% off their range and if you order before midday you will get free next day delivery!

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Another little personalised item which I purchased recently with the addition of my little man to our family is this cross stitch.  I love how pretty it is and how Amy (the creator) has captured us all!  Her attention to detail blew me away!  Get in touch with her now to see what she can create for you – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MamaSewGoodGifts

I got this little necklace as a Birthday gift and it hasn’t been off my neck since!  I love the mix of both silver and rose gold and the chain is fully adjustable which means it can be worn as a choker or a longer chain.  I have hinted to Harry that I would like the matching bracelet for Mother’s Day so lets hope he produces the goods!!  You can find the necklace here: http://www.argento.co.uk/en/Olivia-Burton-Silver-and-Rose-Gold-Bow-Necklace/m-57984.aspx

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And lastly, you can’t go wrong with a picture of yourself!!  Whose Mum wouldn’t love that?!  Find these canvases here:https://www.photobox.co.uk/shop/wall-decor/canvas-prints#page=details

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If you have any other great ideas for Mother’s Day gifts please let me know!

Hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill

Collaborations, LIFESTYLE

Weaning (In collaboration with Glenisk)

Hello there!

There is nothing more my wee Harry loves eating than yogurt; so when Glenisk got in touch asking if they could send us some of their products I jumped at the chance!

Glenisk, who are best known for their award winning natural yogurts, are a local family business based just outside Tullymore. They are celebrating an amazing 30 years of business and have just launched an Absolutely No-Added sugar Organic Baby yogurt range. These yogurts are packed with calcium, protein and nutrients making them a perfect first weaning food for babies over 6 months!

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From early on in Harry’s weaning journey I introduced yogurts and they are definitely a favourite of his.  I struggled to find a yogurt in the supermarket with little or no added sugar and it is really important for me to be giving Harry the healthiest option out there.  Glenisk is the perfect solution to this struggle as it has no-added sugar, nothing artificial and is a great source of calcium. This makes it the perfect snack, or to use as part of a recipe.  The little yogurt pots are full of organic milk, organic fruit and nothing else!

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Glenisk kindly sent us a range of flavours to try; these included: natural, apple & pear, apple & strawberry and banana & peach.  Harry has sampled all of the flavours now and you can see from his face in the photo below he loved them!

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Banana and peach is a firm favourite with Harry so I will be stocking up!  They are available in Asda and Tesco NI now so super handy to pick up when doing your weekly shop!  If you would like to try a sample for free use the link here to sign up: http://glenisk.com/win/new-organic-baby-yogurts

Hope you enjoy reading, as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill

 

LIFESTYLE

Harry Potter Themed Party

Hello there!

My Sister is always super kind when it comes to special occasions, so when a close friend of hers got in contact about organising a surprise party I jumped at the chance!  The friend arranged the hire of a hot tub for the weekend, and I provided the venue and food.  I decided to go for a Harry Potter theme as my Sister is a super fan!  I searched through Pinterest a few evenings and came up with the following:

So first in the kitchen, I had a drinks table and called it ‘Snape’s Potion Class’.  I used a light box, string lights, bulb glasses and bottles under bell glasses.

I also had a sweetie table with suitcases, a cage (put a rabbit inside instead of an owl as an inside joke!!) and snacks with Harry Potter names.

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Moving onto the living room; I had an invisibility cloak stand using a frame, broomstick and some hangers.

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Then letters coming out of the fireplace, using a string of flashing lights and some a5 pieces of paper folded over and taped.

I made a Photo Booth from a large piece of card.

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I wrote on the mirror with lipstick.

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Then in the bathroom I placed a sign on the top of the toilet and wrote on the mirror.

And lastly heres the Birthday girl herself after 3 hours in the hot tub!!!

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These decorations were all created on a super tight budget and most things I already had!  It just shows you don’t need to spend a fortune when you can be creative with what you have in your home!

Let me know if you have any other great party ideas!

Hope you enjoy reading, as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill

INTERIORS

Setting up the table for Christmas at Rose Cottage

Hello there!

So with Christmas Day fast approaching, this week has seen me set up the table to enjoy dinner on at Rose Cottage.  Being the self-labelled queen of faffing, there is nothing more I love than making up the table and rearranging it 152 times!  I have collaborated with Ferguson Flowers on this post, who have supplied me with the most stunning centre piece you ever did see!  My whole table setting was planned around this statement flower arrangement which has created the most beautiful focal point.

To create my Christmas table firstly I roped in a few friends to help me paint placemats onto the top.  (I will maybe do a blog post on the details of how I done this if there’s any interest…let me know!)  Initially I had hoped to write onto the placements with a chalk pen who would be sitting where, but ran out of room!  I think the black really sets off the flowers and plates, and is a nice contrast against the white table.

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Next I placed one large Emma Bridgewater black toast dinner plate onto each place setting and a smaller side plate on top.  The napkin was then put on top of this.  The cutlery placed to one side along with 2 wine glasses.  I tied some gold sprayed eucalyptus  along with beaded hearts onto the back of the chairs and a fur throw onto the bench.

Lastly (and most importantly!!) the beautiful floral centre piece was placed in the centre on top of a gold runner.  This arrangement is full of eucalyptus, which is my absolute favourite, along with large cream roses and a fast selection of seasonal greenery.

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I think you’d agree these flowers are simply stunning and really make the table display special? The staff at Ferguson Flowers are amazingly talented and so helpful! It is a leading online delivery store, with over 40 years experience in the florist industry. They deliver flowers throughout Northern Ireland, and your still in time to order for Christmas!  They can be contacted via the following –

Website here

Instagram here

Facebook here

Phone 02890 240111

Or you could pop into their beautiful store found on 45 Belmont Road Belfast.  Their shop has stunning wreaths, arrangements, bouquets and gift ideas available already made up to purchase; or they can make them up bespoke.

I would love to hear how you will be styling your Christmas table!

Hope you enjoy reading, as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill

blog, LIFESTYLE

Wrapping up Christmas as Rose Cottage

Hello there!

We are into week 3 of the run up to Christmas at Rose Cottage, which sees us wrapping up the gifts and placing them under the tree.  I love being creative with gift wrapping, trying to think of new cost effective ideas to make them look that extra bit special! Wrapping presents like these shown can be so simple to do and will sit beautifully below your tree.  I have been sharing these ideas this week over on insta stories and the response has been totally overwhelming…Seems my followers love gift wrapping as much as me!

The first gift wrapping idea I’d like to share is using brown paper bags.  These can be bought in packs of 6 from the pound shop for £1 – making them super cost effective! I have added a few extras to each bag to give them a real Christmassy feel.

On the first bag, I have folded down the top and placed a white paper doily over with a little peg to keep it in place.  I have also stamped onto the doily who the gift is to.

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The second bag also has the top folded down.  I have punched a hole in the top right hand corner, poked a berry pick through and bent it down at the back to hold it in place. The bag was then stamped with ‘Merry & Bright’.

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The third bag has a tree shape on the front which was created with a cotton bud dipped in white paint and dotted on.  I then added 2 little tree baubles onto the handle at the top.

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I punched 2 holes in the top of the forth bag between the handles and threaded a ribbon through.  A label was then added with who the gift is from.

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The second gift wrapping idea is using brown paper.  The again is so cheap to buy and can be bought in rolls found in any of the pound or discount stores.

The first brown paper wrapped present has a little car drawn onto the side with a sharpie pen.  I’ve then tied a tree onto the top with some red and white twine.

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The second has a paper doily tied onto the present and then stamped with who the present is from and to.

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The third has a tree shape put onto the front using some ribbon.  The ribbon is bent back and forward, then attached to the present using a glue gun.  I then put some cord around the gift and 2 little baubles.

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The third gift wrapping idea is using a small crate from Ikea which can be purchased here.  I have put a piece of tissue paper in to line the bottom of the crate and then my goodies on top.  Bigger items to be put at the back and smaller at the front.  If you find some of your smaller items are getting lost in the crate, then scrumple up some tissue paper and set the item on top of it.  I have then wrapped the whole crate with some cellophane by first setting it on top of the roll.  Pull the sides up to measure how much you need.  Once you have cut it to size, gather up the ends and use some string to hold together.  Then tidy up the sides, like you would a present, by using some cello tape to keep it in place.  I’ve then added a ribbon tied into a bow and a stag Christmas tree decoration on top.

I hope these ideas have given you some inspiration and I would love to hear if you have any money saving gift wrapping ideas!

Hope you enjoy reading, as much as I enjoy writing!

Jill